Checkmate
by PallasAthene13
Summary: Ayva Provado is terrified of the Games that killed her cousin. Her nightmare will drive her to drastic measures, and actions that no Tribute has ever taken before. She will be down in Hunger Games history, forever... Based on the oneshot Checkmate from In The Background.
1. Chapter 1

**This is based on a oneshot I did for In the Background. I fell in love with Ayva, so I decided to expand on her story even more. If you want to see the basis for this, please go check that out. Thanks!**

**I am not Suzanne Collins, I do not own the Hunger Games, I do not own the idea for Ayva. All other characters and all names are my creation and are not canon.**

* * *

I'm running, feet slamming the ground, faster than I've ever gone in my life. There are no trees- where are the trees?- just plain grass, as far as I can see. They're behind me, so close behind me, I can feel their breath on my neck. I wish there were trees… they're coming, they're right here, something's tugging on my arm, and I stumble forward, trying to pull away…

"Ayva!" My eyes snap open. "Ayva, get up!" My little sister, Asha, is the one shaking my arm. Her bright eyes light up when I smile weakly at her. "Ayva, guess what?" She doesn't wait for my answer. "Mama says that she'll take me out today!"

"That's great, Asha." I'm still bleary with exhaustion, but her six-year-old charm is irresistible. "You need to get all dressed and washed if you want to leave, then." She nods, eyes wide and innocent, before scampering out of the room. I collapse back against my bed, and remember my nightmare. It's the same one that haunts me every year, this close to the Reaping.

I'm eleven, still too young for the Games. Asha still has years. But my older brother, Alder, is 13. He has tessarae out. Almost every kid in District Seven does.

Mama tells me that I had a cousin once, Aunt Ela's son. I don't remember him. I was only a baby when he died in the Games, and Alder was a toddler. But ever since I heard of him, the Games haunt my nightmares. Aunt Ela was never the same after her son's death. Although, I guess nobody is.

"Ayva. Are you up?" Daddy's at the door now, his deep voice resonating through my little room. "Yes, Daddy." I drag myself out of bed, pulling on my work clothes. Alder, Daddy, and I spend our days out in the forest, while Asha is at school and Mama works in the town. School in Seven is limited to weekends once you turn ten. Weekdays are spent with an ax in hand.

Before I leave my room, I run a hand over the little wooden toy on my dresser. We all have one- it's a tradition that a child carves a toy out of the first tree they fell. Alder's a simple, a ball, but it's been polished to perfection. Mine is a crude bird, made with the clumsy strokes of a child, but I love it. The head is rubbed smooth from my fingers, every morning. It reminds me that I belong, I'm strong, I am from Seven.

"Ayva Provado!" I sigh. "Coming!"

* * *

The woods are alive, filled with sound. The crashing of axes into trees, shouts, laughter. The youngest workers, children like me, are running around, helping clear away branches, ushering in trucks, helping around. Most of us have passed basic training for cutting trees, but we won't be able to do that as a job until we turn 15. We still have training for a couple years before they give us axes out here.

My best friend, Ivy, is my work partner. We never let each other out of our sight. We're like twins; we know everything about each other, and we're practically inseparable. She's the only one who knows about my nightmares, my worries about Alder, my deepest secrets. Ivy is my lifeline in the days leading up to the Reaping.

"Ayva, you okay?" I glance up at her. I'd been zoning out, focused on my thoughts- easily the most dangerous thing to do in a forest full of falling trees. "I'm fine. Sorry." She nods, turning back to lead in the next Capitol truck. Peacekeepers drive them through the forest, pulling away trees. The District people will never touch them, but it'd our job to guide them through the miles of identical forest. It's tiring, but we know this place like the back of our hands. We practically grew up in the trees.

The truck comes to a halt, and a squad of older workers comes into view, dragging the huge tree in slings. Years ago, the lumberjacks had to drag the tree the entire way back to town, but the Capitol realized how much more efficient this was. The workers haul the tree into the platform attached to the truck. It's tiring work, and the Peacekeepers don't help. In a few years, Ivy and I will be doing this. But for now, we walk back, ready to guide in the next truck.

This is how we spend our days, marching through the forest. It's good work, they tell us. Other Districts have it so much worse. I do my best to believe that.


	2. Chapter 2

**Homework overload means I can't update as often as I'd like to.**

* * *

The day of the Reaping is cold and dreary. We're lucky to have no work today, because a thick layer of fog hides anything more than five feet away. The streets are dead, with everybody huddled inside near their fires.

My own family is sitting together, under our few, threadbare blankets. Daddy and Alder are playing chess with the little set they carved a few years ago. Asha is asleep, curled up with her head in Mom's lap. I watch the chess game silently, trying to understand what's happening.

"Ayva?" Alder is watching me. "Did you want to learn?" I look at the board, uncertain. "Okay. Sure." Daddy gets up to add wood to the fire and I take his place across from my brother. Alder's large, calloused hands point out pieces as he speaks.

"The first row is all pawns. They can move forward one space, except for their first move of the game; then they can move forward two. The second row has two rooks, two knights, two bishops, a queen, and a king. The rooks can move forward or sideways until they run into another piece. Knights move like the letter 'L'- forward two, sideways one, or sideways two, forward one. Bishops go diagonally. The queen can move any way she wants, however far she wants. And then there's the king, the most important piece. He can move in any direction, but only one space. If you capture the other side's king, you win."

He demonstrates each move, then we start our game. He beats me soundly, explaining rules, moves, and history the entire time. Chess used to be played all over the world, he explains. But now it's unique to District Seven, where we make our own boards. We're not really supposed to know how to play, but the Peacekeepers don't care. As long as kings and queens aren't mentioned in front of them. Alder tells me that they used to be leaders, before Panem existed. People believed that they were chosen by some kind of spiritual leader, called God. I don't ask any more about it. I know the danger of the Peacekeepers, especially when you know something you shouldn't.

"Checkmate," Alder says, grinning.

"What?"

"Checkmate. That means that I win. No matter how you move, I can capture your king on my next move. You can't escape. If it was just check, then you could escape."

I scowl at my brother. "Fine." Daddy's back by now, watching us play. Asha's awake too, following our hands. Mom smiles at my little sister. "Alder will teach you too, one day."

Daddy, Alder, and I play for hours, rotating around the board. When it's time to go to the Reaping, some of the fog has lifted, and I've finally won a game.

* * *

Asha and I hold hands as we walk towards the Reaping. Alder walks ahead of us, and I can tell he's shaking a bit. I tell myself that he won't be picked. Older kids have so many more slips in the Reaping balls. And I'm glad I'm still too young.

Aunt Ela joins us in the crowd of adults and children. Alder turns, giving each of us a quick hug before joining his friends and the other 13-year-old boys. Asha squeezes my hand, scared, as he walks away.

"It'll be okay, Asha. I promise. He won't get picked." She nods, eyes wide and trusting. I remember when I was her age, and Alder was still too young to be Reaped. The Games seemed so far away, like they didn't affect me. But then Alder turned twelve, and I heard about the mysterious dead cousin, and the Games began haunting my nightmares. I wish I was still ignorant.

There's enough fog still left that the Reaping Day video is hazy. Seven's escort, Hermia, seems so far away. But her words are clear, like she's right next to me.

"Let's start with the young ladies!" she chirps. We watch her hand dip into the Reaping ball. It's silent in the square. Nobody dares to breathe. We all stand completely still, waiting for a name.

"Karie Wilson!" An eighteen-year-old girl walks shakily towards the stage. Near the front of the crowd, a mother wails, burying her face in her hands. The rest of the crowd is silent. It's a sight we're used to.

Karie stands beside Hermia as the boy's name is called. I see Daddy's arm tighten around Mom out of the corner of my eye. My breath is caught in my through as the escort begins the speak.

"And the male Tribute is…. Jackson Lewis!" I let my breath out quietly. The boy, who looks about Alder's age, joins Karie on stage. The Reaping is quickly over, and Alder rejoins us.

Walking home with my entire family still intact, I can't help but worry that next year, I'll be in the Reaping as well.

* * *

**So, I won't be able to update regularly because of school. But I'll try and get another chapter out today or tomorrow.**


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